I will be doing my first metric century this weekend any advice?

[joshdavis]

I did the Tour de Nash last weekend, and ended up doing 52 miles. I learned a little on how I should prep myself (nutritional wise). But I was wondering if you guys/gals have some tips to get my first metric century in this weekend. (I will also be doing the Tour de Cure next weekend, and a week off, then a duathlon the weekend after.) Looks like its going to be about 80 - 85 degrees out with about 75% humidity, so I know I will drain fast.

I carry powerbar's power gels and cliff shot blocks with me. I also use OS performance drinks, http://www.oscycling.com/.

Thanks for the help!

[Tom Stormcrowe]

Preload on carbs the night before, start out well hydrated, drink frequently (About every 10-15 minutes sip), take in about 250 calories an hour, pace yourself and don't look at the odometer. ;) Have fun and enjoy the ride. :D

[CliftonGK1]

I just did my TdC on the 17th, and it was in the upper 80s and lower 90s, high humidity.

Training: You're on track with the amount of mileage increase you're aiming for.

Food: Carb up a couple days in advance, not just the night before. I find that if I just carb up the night before a ride, I feel like a leadbelly the next day. A couple days of medium carb loading works better (for me. YMMV)

Ride Nutrition: Gels and such are OK for a quick boost, but they're not going to work as a long term sustainable source. Consider Clif Bars, PB&J on whole wheat, or anything else with some substance to it that won't just flush through your stomach immediately. My century food combo is Accelerade, Accel Gels, and Clif Bars (1/2 bottle, 1 gel, 1 bar per hour ~ 300cal.)

Hydration: When it's hot and humid, make sure to get enough water and keep your electrolytes up. Nuun tablets, Enduralytes, etc. Some sort of an electrolyte replacement to keep from cramping up.

[bautieri]

Rubber side down :) Best of luck to you!

[joshdavis]

There is a few rest stops on the way. I will try to add some bags to my bike to be able to carry some food. I plan I taking my camelpak with me. I carry one bottle of OS endurance and one bottle of plain water. I will check my LBS for some electrolyte tabs. They have a pretty good selection of nutritional aids.

[kenseth03]

Good luck and have fun!

[BCIpam]

Enjoy yourself. Don't take it so seriously. Just get the mileage under your belt, know it's a piece of cake and then next time get serious.

The hardest thing to do is properly pace yourself. The excitement will make you ride too fast and too hard in the beginner. Fight against that. Just do your normal ride and you'll be surprised how easy.

Also - no long sag stops - get in and out, no lollygaggin'. Best way to get a good time is to not waste it at the sags (but take the sags when they come up). Make sure you stay properly dehydrated - that means sipping water every 15 minutes or more. At each sag, grab a orange slice, a fig cookie, whatever, not too much but eat. Very important.

Have fun! Good luck!

[Bone Head]

Not that I'm an expert but......
Stay Hydrated -- Drink before you are thirsty -- from what I have read 1 bottle per hour. IMHO, you said that you are carring 2 bottles, if there are adaquately stocked rest stops, and you plan on stopping at them, do you really need the extra weight of the camelback? Also I have seen electrolyte replacement powders in small packages in the sports drink section of W**mart- They are kinda like the powdered Propel or Crystal Light envelopes. Inexpensive, small and quite effective. Other option is measure the appropriate amount of Gatorade, etc powder into a ziplock bag.

Bagel/peanut butter/bananna for breakfast.

Sunscreen??

HAVE FUN!!! :thumb:

[The Historian]

I did the Tour de Nash last weekend, and ended up doing 52 miles. I learned a little on how I should prep myself (nutritional wise). But I was wondering if you guys/gals have some tips to get my first metric century in this weekend. (I will also be doing the Tour de Cure next weekend, and a week off, then a duathlon the weekend after.) Looks like its going to be about 80 - 85 degrees out with about 75% humidity, so I know I will drain fast.

I carry powerbar's power gels and cliff shot blocks with me. I also use OS performance drinks, http://www.oscycling.com/.

Thanks for the help!

The best advice was posted above:

- drinks lots
- eat a small amount of food regularly
- don't dawdle at rest stops
- have fun

My only suggestion is don't go overboard with carb loading the night before.

[Mr. Beanz]

Not that I'm an expert but......
IMHO, you said that you are carring 2 bottles, if there are adaquately stocked rest stops, and you plan on stopping at them, do you really need the extra weight of the camelback? Other option is measure the appropriate amount of Gatorade, etc powder into a ziplock bag.


Exactly! And skip the extra bags for extra food and supplies. Don't need that much stuff to haul around.

My plan is a very big pasta dinner the night before a strenuous ride. If this is your first 62, may be considered strenuous. Then a good breakfast early, 3 eggs. pancakes, sausage. Then munch on stuff at the rest stops.

On a century, a sandwich at 70 miles does wonders. Maybe 40 on a metric if your new to the distance.

Biggest tip is DO YOUR OWN PACE! Don't try to keep another rider's pace. SO many times I've kept my pace while others shoot out of the gates only to pass 90 % of them later in the ride. Ride smart! Easy to do with all the comotion going on around an organized ride!

[Mazama]

I took in a peanut butter and honey sandwich every two hours, and water (about 10oz) every 5 miles. No sports drinks or tablets needed.

Stopped and stretched every 10-20 miles as well.

Start as early as possible to avoid the heat.

[AirBeagle1]

Biggest tip is DO YOUR OWN PACE! Don't try to keep another rider's pace.

+1 -- I did my first metric century a couple weeks ago as part of a group ride where I made the painful mistake of trying to keep up with the "fast" group for way too long. I pushed too hard, and paid for it later in the ride -- if I'd kept my own pace at the beginning and just enjoyed myself instead of suffering for the better part of two hours, I have no doubt I'd have been in MUCH better shape toward the end. And the funny part is, the entire time I was pushing to keep up with the fast group, I kept telling myself "this is stupid, you're going to pay for this later"... but I kept doing it anyhow.

The short version -- listen to your body and go your own pace.

Good luck!

[coasting]

enjoy the scenery...have fun ... don't look at the cycle computer

[joshdavis]

I try to stay hydrated all day everyday. I have a pretty crazy eating schedule. I do about 6 - 7 meals a day that are about 300 - 400 cals each and I drink about 2 gallons of water a day. I keep good track of my macros. I have planned my diet out for the week to be a little carb heavy towards the weekend. So, that should help pay off.

The sag stops are always heavily stocked with anything we might need. I usually stop every 20 - 30 miles or so, just to get off and let the twig and berries take a rest (sorry). And I will refuel on some pb cookies or what not. i can acctually stay with the fast to medium speed groups for a good while. We tend to get a big group draft going of 30+ riders. which is the coolest thing ever. We averaged 25+ mph for about 15 - 20 miles this past weekend, again, coolest thing ever. Only thing that really slowed me down was the three flats I had :-(.

My biggest concern as of now is going to be the heat, this will be the "hottest" ride of the season so far. But I am trying to take the steps to be well hydrated.

[joshdavis]

this ride is also the "fastest century in the south" the elite peleton did it under 4 hours.

[wrk101]

+1 Stay hydrated.

+1 Factor the availability of supplies at rest stops into what you carry (carry less). I find I do not need to carry near as much as I usually carry for solo rides, as the rest stops will allow you to replenish water/fluids and carbs. You might want to carry one bottle of water, maybe two max, and your favorite snack. the camelbak is best suited for solo rides. Note, I am a nut about hydration, so I always carry two bottles of water, even if it is a short ride...

+1 Ride your pace, not someone else's. Use the first few miles as a warm up (start kind of slow). If you do find someone riding your pace, then track them for a while, its a good way to maintain a steady cadence.

+1 Sunscreen. Use it. Benefit from it.

I rode a MC at the Tour De Chesapeake last Saturday and never touched any of the food I was carrying.....Lesson learned.

[andrelam]

Since you already have managed to finish 52 mile, taking it up to a metric centry should not be too much harder. I recently did an 82 mile ride followed later in the afternoon with a 7 mile family ride. My previous longest ride was 42 miles. I know you are only supposed to add about 10% to your rides, but I didn't have time in the season to do any longer prep rides. I was riding solo, but that was probably an advantage. Ride a speed that feels good to YOU. Don't worry about what others are doing. Even Lance Armstrong rarely won stages in the Tour de France... he was just increadibly consistant. If you feel like you are starting to get winded, then back off a little. You are not performing a time trial. It is important to listn to your body. I also knew that I two killer hills in the last 2 miles of my ride so I was careful not to arrive completely dead for the last few miles. I was very pleased that I did not hurt at all afterwards. I could feel the workout on my legs, but there was never pain afterward. Riding should be run.

As others mentioned remain properly hydrated. My ride the temps started in the low 40's and finished in the 60's. I had 2 24 oz water bottles and 2 20 oz bottles of Gatoraide. I stopped every 20 miles (roughtly every hour). My behind and arms needed a few minutes break at that interval, and it also seemed a good interval to eat at. At each stop I ate a little something. At my first stop I ate a banana. At my 2nd stop I ate a peanut butter and cheese sandwich (its a Dutch thing I think... I grew up on lots of Gouda cheese). At my 3rd stop I ate a Cliff bar. I alternate my drinking between water and electrolytes and most of the discussions and articles I've seen seem to indicate that you definitely don't need to consume 100% energy drink and that pain water is still great, and just alternate. You ride will be much hotter so you will have to deal with more hydration issues.

Enjoy the ride!
André

[joshdavis]

I ended up getting 62.25 miles in a little over 3:30 hours. Not to bad. We had a head wind, 20+ mph, all the way which sucked. Other than that it was a good ride. I did see someone with a FatCyclist dot com jersey today.

great weather made it even better today. going for 150 next weekend

[East Hill]

Good job! Head winds are miserable, especially if you can't escape them :( . But still, you now have your first metric century out of the way, and it's on to the century!

East Hill

[jaxgtr]

I took in a peanut butter and honey sandwich every two hours, and water (about 10oz) every 5 miles. No sports drinks or tablets needed.

Stopped and stretched every 10-20 miles as well.

Start as early as possible to avoid the heat.


By the way, I meant to ask you, where did you store these sandwiches?

[jaxgtr]

I ended up getting 62.25 miles in a little over 3:30 hours. Not to bad. We had a head wind, 20+ mph, all the way which sucked. Other than that it was a good ride. I did see someone with a FatCyclist dot com jersey today.

great weather made it even better today. going for 150 next weekend

Very nice

[Air]

I ended up getting 62.25 miles in a little over 3:30 hours. Not to bad. We had a head wind, 20+ mph, all the way which sucked. Other than that it was a good ride. I did see someone with a FatCyclist dot com jersey today.

Wow - great time! Congrats!

great weather made it even better today. going for 150 next weekend

:eek:

[coasting]

I ended up getting 62.25 miles in a little over 3:30 hours. Not to bad. We had a head wind, 20+ mph, all the way which sucked. Other than that it was a good ride. I did see someone with a FatCyclist dot com jersey today.

great weather made it even better today. going for 150 next weekend



Excellent results. 150 miles next? Good luck with that

[joshdavis]

the Tour de Cure is this coming Saturuday. 2 days 75 miles each.